Dancing school gives girls happy feet
Dance Dimension in No. Brunswick celebrating golden anniversary
BY JENNIFER AMATO Staff Writer
Jill Meeker has had her dancing shoes on since she was 3 years old. She grew up taking ballet, tap, jazz and lyrical dance lessons. She did some community theater shows when she was younger.

PHOTOS BY JEFF GRANIT staff Left: Dancers from Dance Dimension in North Brunswick pose for a group picture prior to a dress rehearsal for a recital held June 28 at North Brunswick Township High School. Top: Dancers practice their routines for their recital. Above: Jill Meeker (l) and her mother, Betty Price, are celebrating the 50th anniversary of Dance Dimension. Price bought the studio 28 years ago.

Now, she has been teaching for 31 years and is based out of the Dance Dimension studio in North Brunswick.

The business has been located at 643 Georges Road for 50 years but Meeker's mother, Betty Price, bought the location from her predecessor 28 years ago. Since then, the school has been open to 3-yearolds to high school students during the school months under the direction of seven different dance teachers.

"These are all children we've had since they're babies and we taught them so they could teach our style," Price said of her staff members.

Dance Dimension was one of three original dance studios in the New Brunswick area at the time, and is the only one of the three that is still in operation today. Meeker said they feel their success is due to word of mouth and their reputation, while Price said their success is due in large part to her daughter's ability to teach tap.

"There are a lot of returns of moms coming back with their children," Meeker said.

"[Our former] little 3-year-olds, they're coming back now with their 3-year-olds," Price added.

The participants are currently all girls; although, Price said she would "love" to have boys join the different classes, which usually run once a week for an hour. There are recreational classes, ones for girls looking to compete and lessons for girls who want to dance in college.

There are two high school-age competition teams that compete three times a year. This year alone, the girls won awards for Technical Excellence, High Score of the Day against 200 other performances and Best Choreography awards.

The girls have also danced in the Bahamas, at Walt Disney World, on the Big Red Boat and at Great Adventure.

"When you can beat out 150 other kids and your studio is noted for Technical Excellence by the judges, that's big time," Price said.

However, before getting to such an intense level, both Price and Meeker agreed that ballet is the foundation of all dance forms, teaching proper placement and discipline. They recommend that all girls pursuing the art form begin with ballet.

They also said an extreme amount of patience is necessary when teaching young girls how to dance properly, but is an experience that is well worth it.

"You close for the summer and you miss them, like you haven't seen your family for a while. You can't wait to see the kids again in September," Price said.

"They work very hard, and they are a true team. They are very good friends. There is such camaraderie between the girls," Meeker added. "The results you get from a year's work from the children, when you see them as babies and as teenagers, it's amazing."

To celebrate the business's 50th anniversary, which will officially be in September, Dance Dimension held a recital June 28 featuring a number by mothers who originally attended the school whose daughters now attend. There also was a special performance by former students who are now in college.

"We want this to be an enjoyable and memorable experience for kids. … It should be something they look back on and be happy they spent so much time here," Meeker said.

For more information, call the school at 732-249-4196.

Contact Jennifer Amato at

jamato@gmnews.com.